Ice-making apparatus.



W. T. CARTER. ICE MAKING APPARATUS. APPLICATION FILED MAR,3,1913'.

Patented Mar. 9, 1915.

3 SHEETSSHBET l INVENTOH William 77 curler.

WI THESSES:

A TTOIMIEY W. T. CARTER.

ICE MAKING APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED MA,R7.73,1913U m ww Patented Mar. 9, 1915.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

7%1Zliam Carler.

A TTOHNEY W. T. CARTER.

ICE MAKING APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED MAR.3,1913.

Patented Mar. 9, 1915,

3 SHEETSSHEET 3.

WITNESSES:

iam

ciinrna, or onrcncofmmors.

l Ion-MAKING I Specification of we 1 gl t t a .9 5

Application filed larch a, 1913. Serial no. {515737.1-

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, WILLIAM'T. CARTER, acitizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cookand State of Illinois, have invented certain" new and usefulImprovements in Ice-Making Apparatus, of which the following is aspecification.

This invention relates to apparatus for making ice, and moreparticularly that type of apparatus in which the ice is formed in blocksof certain dimensions by the evaporat1on of liquid ammonia in a jacketsurrounding a tank containing the water to be frozen.

The object of the invention is to dispense 1s a horizontal section ofthe apparatus.

The drawings show the apparatus provided with eight freezing tanksarranged. in sets of'four placed abreast. Of course, the invention is"not limited to any number of tanks and the same may be varied accordingto the desired capacity ofthe apparatus.

Eachfreezing tank comprises a bottom 10, opposite side walls 11, a rearwall 12 and a top 13, which latter slopes downward toward the rear wall.The two sets of four tanks are spaced apart so as to leave a narrowspace 14 betweenrthe rearwalls thereof. The tanks of each set are alsospaced apart sidewise so as to leave a narrow space 15 between the sidewalls of adjacent tanks, which space opens at its innerend into thespace 14. Vertical spacing strips 16 placed between said side walls ofadjacent tanks, at their outer edges, and extending throughout theentire height thereof, close up the spaces 15 in front. Mounted at eachend of the apparatus, in spaced relation with the outer walls of the endtanks of the sets, is an end wall 17 forming a narrow space 18 at theends of the sets of tanks. A space 19 is also formed at the top of thetanks by made slanting the top 13 and top plates 20 which are also tocorrespond "to the slant of are spaced therefrom. The plates20 haveabutting flanges 21, whereby they are riveted 'or otherwise securelyfastened together.

The end enes of the plates 20 meeitheitop of the walls 17 and areriveted are: cured thereto, the latter havingbutstandin g top flanges 22for this purpose. Between the flanges 22 and the plates 20 is' a spacingstrip 23 which also extends between the plates 20 andthe tops 13 of thetanks on both sides of the apparatus. Thisspaci'ng strip thereforeextends entirely around the apparatus-and closes up the space 19 abovethe top of the tanks, and this space is in' communication with thespaces 14 and 15, as well as with from'the bottom 10 of the tanks, thespace 25 thus formed being in communication with the spaces 14, 15 and18. This bottom 24 is secured in the same manner as the top plates 20,and spacing strips 26, similar tothe strips 23, are also employed.

It will be seen from the foregoing that the tanks, With the exception oftheir front portions, are each surrounded by a jacket so that therefrigerating medium may circulatearound the same.

the spaces 18. The appara-' tus has a second bottom 24 which is spacedThe front wall of each tank is in the form of a hollow door 27 hinged atthe bottom and having at the top a short hinged section 28 which fitssnugly against the sloping top 13 of the tank. The door has two hingeknuckles 29 at the bottom which are connected to corresponding knuckles30 on the bottom 24. The upper section 28 of the door has aspring-hingeconnection 31 therewith, the purpose of this hinged sectionbeing to allow access to the tank without opening the main door 27. Thedoor has a waste-outlet pocket 32 at the bottom, the same being providedwith a valve 33'. The door is constructed to form a water-tight closurefor the tank.

he-doors on each side of the apparatus are all rigidly connected so thatthey swing together. This connection is made by the system of pipeswhich will now be describedi supply. This pipe extends horiin front ofthe doors near the botwith the water to be frozen. A pipe 36 leadingfrom a suitable source of compressed air, has branches 37 opening,respectively, into the branches 35. An overflow pipe 38 is alsoprovided, the branches of the same passing through the door near the topthereof so that the water will not exceed a predetermined level in thetanks. This pipe may lead back to the feed water supply. hot water pipe39 is connected by branches 40 with the hollow space in each door for apurpose to be presently described.

The piping for controlling the refrigerant in the jacket surrounding thetanks is arranged as follows: A pipe 41 leading from the liquid ammoniasource discharges into the space 25. A pipe 42 connected to the suctionside of the pump has branchesAZl which open into the space 19 at the topof the tanks. One of the end plates 20 has a bulge 4A to which a pipe44*, for a purpose to be presently described, is connected. At thelongitudinal center of the bottom 24% is a gutter 45 serving as a drainfrom which a pipe 46 leads.

The apparatus operates as follows: The doors 27 being closed, cold wateris admitted into the tanks from the pipe 34, the rise of water in thetanks being limited by the overflow pipe 38. Compressed air is alsodischarged. into the tanks with the entering water through the branches37, to keep the water agitated. A pump (not shown) connected to theoverflow keeps the water in circulation, which, together with the agitation .set up by the air, results in the formation of blocks of clear,transparent ice. Liquid ammonia is discharged by the pipe 41 into thejacket space surrounding the tanks, in which space it vaporizes, and thevapors are withdrawn by the pump through the pipe 42. The water in thetanks will now freeze, the ice starting to form at the walls which aresurrounded by the jacket containing the refrigerant. 'The water freezesacross the tanks forward the doors 27, so' that there will be aconstantly diminishing space next to the doors for the water tocirculate upward, this being due to the fact that the doors are notexposed to the refrigerant. When the blocks of ice are complete, whichmay be seen by opening the door sec-- tions 28, hot ammonia gas isallowed to enter the refrigerant space or jacket from the pipe M Thiswill melt the sides of the blocks which cling to the walls of the tanks,but not that side of the blocks which adheres to the doors. The doorsmay now be swung open taking the adhering blocks with them. The slant ofthe top of the tanks allows the blocks to be swung outwith the doors,the blocks clearing the top. The doors are swung down into horizontalposition, and hot water from the pipe 39 is turned into the interior ofthe doors so that the adhering blocks will be thawed off for removal.

The pipes connected to the doors have suitable flexible connections soas not to interfere with the swing of the doors. The inner surfaces ofthe tanks are galvanized to prevent rust.

As the expansion of the liquid ammonia produces considerable pressure,the walls of the tanks are connected by stay bolts L7.

I claim:

1. In an ice-making apparatus, a freezing tank having a swinging doorforming one of the walls thereof, to which door the finished block ofice adheres, said door being hollow and having a hinged section at thetop, and means for introducing a heating medium into the hollow of thedoor.

2. In an ice-making apparatus, a freezing tank having a. sloping top,and a hollow door forming one of the walls of the tank, said door beinghinged at the bottom to swing downward and outward and closing aaginstthe sloping top, and means for introducing a heating medium into thehollow of the door.

In an ice-making apparatus, a freezing tank surrounded by a refrigerantjacket, and having a swinging closure which is hollow, means forintroducing a heating medium into the jacket and the hollow of theclosure, and water inlets to the tank through the closure.

4. In an ice-making apparatus, a freezing tank surrounded by arefrigerant jacket, and having a swinging hollow closure to which thefinished block of ice adheres, means for introducing a heating mediuminto the jacket to thaw the block off the tank walls and permit theclosure to be swung open, and means for introducing a heating mediuminto the hollow of the closure to thaw the block off the same.

In testimony whereof I aifix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

WILLIAM T. CARTER.

Witnesses:

S. J. LEI-IRER, H. G. BATCHELOR.

